[striking]

There's plenty of room for communities out there. Being willing to share your secret sauce doesn't necessarily ensure you have direct competitors, it means you are establishing a foundation that others can build on. And it means others may contribute to your efforts.

It's a little like open source software. It's pretty unlikely that every SaaS provider needs to write their own DB and gain a competitive advantage that way. Why not work together to maintain one?

Communities like these then succeed a little more based on their own merits and what they add beyond the table stakes instead of just happening to get the right combination together at the right time.

I help run a community myself, but I'm tired of doing so for getting back very little of what I give. This post has given me some ideas on how to continue my journey a little more sustainably.

[mlent]

OP here, thanks for your comment!

I also don't see it as competition. People will join if they think it's valuable, they'll leave if they don't. You can also be part of multiple communities if you think it's worth it.

I'm glad you got some ideas from the post about making your community more sustainable. Wishing you the best with that!